Beginnings part iii

A week went by, I was distracted, barely doing any missions or combat patrols - haunting the bazaar hoping I'd see her again. I sent Cia a message asking about dinner and she gave me a time and an address - Torrinos - Deep in Lonetrek. So I flew over. I arrived early and paced around the docking bay until the right time.

I brought some things I thought Cia and Camille might like, including a weapon. It's a high tech version of the one I carry. She had told me she had nightmares about one time she'd killed someone with a knife - though now I wonder if it was the knife or the killing - and my solution to that particular problem sits on my hip.

I dressed somewhat formally; much more so than normally. and Cia was wearing a simple blue dress that highlighted her eyes - I thought she looked wonderful. Camille was impressed with the gifts, though they were mostly junk from my hangar. The meal was great (though I don't remember much about it), the company excellent. After the food, Camille volunteered to go do her homework, and gave me a huge wink when Cia wasn't looking - is that the little-sister seal of approval?

I was awkward and tongue-tied, Cia was charming and wonderful... We almost held hands, and I kissed her on the cheek when I left. I wanted to hold her but I didn't want to scare her. After what her father did, or what I imagined he did, I felt like any move might ruin things. Every time she blushed I felt my heart beat a little faster.

I asked about the possibility of dinner without Camille sometime, and Cia said yes. My heart soared.

Cia had resigned from her corp - her CEO was killing people she thought of as friends, and she didn't want to be involved. Captain Vikarion was sure he was right, that his cause justified any action however unpleasant - he reminded her of her father I think.

She said she had promised herself a week to think about what to do next. I might have mentioned Re-Awakened ...

I left feeling embarrassed after tripping over the furniture. A silly end to a perfect evening.

I had another early morning op the next morning, and had to fly 30 jumps to get there slightly late - I didn't miss much, and we tracked a war target down in highsec and popped and podded him. I was sleep deprived from the late finish and the early start and I didn't care - the 'verse was a wonderful place.

After the Op, I stopped in at the Shackled Amarr to talk with the other pilots on the Op. Sarr was there - she hadn't been on the Op, but she'd been drinking again. She was angry. She said a pilot in Gradient used to be a Slaver, and had bragged about it, and her corp didn't care; that they were covering things up; that they didn't want her to make a fuss. Elsebeth Rhiannon, her CEO, had told her to drop it. Sarr wouldn't - couldn't. She asked me to talk to Eva or KJ - the Alliance directors - and get them to do something about it. Other pilots from the Op started filing into the bar and I used it as an excuse to get out.

I dropped a line to Eva and took off to Rens to be far away from Pator; from Sarrapis when she's drunk.

I saw Cia in space - she was doing missions in Rens, working on standings with the Brutor Tribe. I couldn't think of a reason she'd do that unless she was thinking about Re-Awakened's standing requirements.

I walked the Bazaar for a bit smiling a lot, and found a coffee house called Lenfa's. It's comfortable and hidden. I gradually relaxed and waited for Eva. I don't get to talk to my CEO often, but I enjoy it when I do. I told Eva about Sarrapis, about her fears and her drinking, and Eva told me that it was common in ex-slaves, She'd seen it before that it would pass with time. Eva promised she'd look into Sarr's problem.

I told Eva I was hoping to recruit Cia into Re-Awakened, that she had just left White Rose, and that I'd seen her missioning in Rens that morning. Eva smiled and told me that she thought Cia would fit in the corp, that she was pleased she'd recruited me, and that she was only waiting a couple of months before making me a director because she wanted me to still be having fun.

Director? Me? Responsible in part for the workings of the alliance? I must have looked stunned, since I think Eva laughed at me. I suggested that recruiter roles would be adequate, and she nodded and agreed - My first job as an official recruiter was going to be interviewing Silver Night.

Silver Night! He's the one Amieta works for. He helped save Cia from her father. Maybe he'd help convince Cia to join Re-Awakened?